In the heart of Kampala and other urban areas in Uganda, there is an uprising of local musical talent with foreign influence as most of the music they consumed was international standard. Prolific young artists are seeking to recreate the same great music in their own styles.
Urban music is the music usually consumed by urban dwellers and tends to be of western influence say hiphop/rap, Electronic Dance Music (EDM), Raggaeton, Raggae and Pop. Literally, the artists do what the stars do but in their own blend and vibe coupled with their originality and background. These new styles of music include Afro pop, Afro Soul, Afro EDM, Afro House, Afrobeats and Amapiano.
Vibu is an event scheduled quarterly at various locations in the capital where these creative artists vocal out their musical creations to an audience that is most welcoming to their style as they seek to attract more and more people. One of the ways this is achieved is by inviting friends and family and asking a friend to tell a friend that the international styles of music you like are made also in the pearl of Africa and you can give it a listen. In turn, this makes people more aware of the urban music scene since people spare time to give the music a try as the artists pick up fans and an audience right here in their home country.
Leone Okello and Mwine Ngabo are the chief organizers and founders of this event as they believe the urban music scene has great potential and talent to make it big and reach international coverage. Nobody knows how and why they picked up interest but it is clear they love the music and the artists as well. To my surprise, they are not artists but rather entrepreneurs seeking to promote urban music in Uganda and internationally. Leone and Henry maintain fruitful relations with these many artists and provide them with various opportunities and avenues to expose their crafts and obtain local audiences.
The most recent Vibu event happened in August this month as we so a variety of urban artists perform and some alongside each other. Held at Panamera bar & Lounge in Naguru, the venue was filled with guests that were in excitement and appreciation of the young urban artists and they believe the next global star will be from the urban music group of creatives. Another way to put it is that the next Azawi will be from the urban music scene.
A couple of artists lined up for the event and I will gladly list them for you: Tai Dai, Elle B, Tera Nitric, Joshua Baraka, Akeine, Lucas Blacc, Wander Jr, Drillz, Joka. Other artists that attended include, Fleak Type DJ KosGabby and DJ Arta. Genres such as reggae, soul, rap, EDM, R&B and Afrobeat filled the waves on that Friday night. Most importantly, the artists were able to link up and associate with each other since they are one family as the artist communinity is the artist’s first audience and fan base.
One of the guests at the event said they are impressed with sounds of the urban music group and appreciate the direction that Ugandan music is taking as there is so much diversity, creativity and quality in the music. Uganda could very well compete with other African countries in the global music industry with this immense talent and rival states like Nigeria and South Africa which dominate the Africa music industry.
I would like call upon anybody out there that is a fan of western music to listen and give these young talents just a little bit of attention because they may surely love with what they have to offer. Most times, fellow Ugandans find it unbelievable that urban music is made by Ugandans and this shows that urban music group has a long way to go as regards to making locals aware of the good quality music they create. Certainly, they will reach global dominance as they promote their underground music styles into the mainstream music scene.
Follow Urban Flow playlists on Spotify and Apple music for the Ugandan Urban Music Sounds: https://open.spotify.com/user/312ln4o65iqzxzdjgus3caqotoaa?si=7gcM77z8Q5ae_SzNQKun9w&utm_source=copy-link https://music.apple.com/ug/playlist/tubayo-menu/pl.u-WabZ7VZCejy4boJ
Listen & follow these essential playlists for Ugandan urban music on Spotify & Apple music: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7Ckc561TYvxwAskJueLwFX?si=0G9ufWD-S2eAPlz7nY6EDg https://music.apple.com/ug/playlist/viivid-spotlight/pl.u-xlyNYjlFJ1G8Yjx
Music Matters 